I came here tonight because...

Here's hoping you have a wonderful new year.

In the spirit of unrestrained optimism, here's one of my favorite scenes from my favorite movie. Enjoy:

Mindy Music (Updated)

With apologies to Jodi, I'm one of those freaks who likes Christmas Music.

It must come from my childhood. In a house where I remember a lot of chaos and discord, there was a brief time of respite when the humongous console stereo was stacked high with Christmas records, the lights were dimmed, and anyone who cared to could sit in the living room, eyes closed, and escape from the madness. Or at least pretend to.

So every year, I make it a point to pick up one or two Christmas recordings. This year, there were some great ones to choose from. James Taylor put his own unique spin on some mellow classics, Josh Groban belted out an instant classic*, and of course, Hallmark gave us the gift of Manilow. Y'all know rule one on this blog: Don't diss the Manilow.

The trend in recent years has been for both established and struggling artists to release a holiday album of some sort. The idea here is that it will be a perennial bestseller, and it's a pretty safe bet for fans and non-fans alike. But the quality is often dubious. For every classic like Mariah Carey's excellent "All I Want For Christmas is You", there's a complete screechy dud like Christina Aguilera's entire Christmas CD. Heck, even Mariah ruined "O Holy Night" by oversinging every single vowel. But I digress.

This year's biggest surprise was the third album by "Alt-Country" singer Mindy Smith. Don't worry if you haven't heard of her; despite having the respect of the entire Nashville recording community, she really hasn't broken out commercially. This is probably a good thing, because she hasn't been ruined by the fickle Goddess of commercialism.

This CD is a gem. Smith's voice is so delicate, so tender, you think she must be the bastard child of Allison Krauss and Cinderella. Listening to her is like drinking fine wine from a $300 glass—exquisite, but somehow terrifying, like you're going to shatter the thing if you don't handle it very delicately.

There isn't a bad cut on the entire recording. A jazzed-up version of "I'll Be Home For Christmas" manages to make the song sound vital again, stripping it of its sicky sentimentality without making it sound too contemporary. She even manages to roast that old chestnut of "The Christmas Song" and gets away unscathed. And her duet with Allison Krauss on "Away in a Manger" is, well, just lovely. The original songs are equally wonderful.

So why bother writing this post? Beats me. I guess I just wanted to share this great find. And don't be put off by the "Country" label. Mindy Smith is one artist who defies easy labeling. Long may she run.


* Seriously, if his version of "Panis Angelicus"doesn't move you, I have to question if you have a soul...

Updated to fix broken link and add footnote.

I Believe

Merry Christmas, faithful readers reader.



P.S.:

Don't forget to read Diary of a Tree.

Trust me (like it says on the money)

BEST. CHRISTMAS. VIDEO. EVER.

Wow

Looks like the book project is back on after all!

OK, Enough Frivolity

OK, no more snark from me until after the new year.

For years, I've been promising my brother that I'll get our old family movies transferred to DVD. After all, that's one of the services my business provides.

But like the shoemaker's kids who have no footwear, I always get bogged down. The same happened this year, with a rush of last-minute projects that precluded me from doing my own.

But this morning, I took some time and quickly transferred a few old family Christmas movies so my brother could see SOMETHING to hold him over until I can get the rest done. So here's footage of my family from when I was two, thirteen and twelve years old (one reel, as it turns out, was out of sequence). The transfer isn't the greatest (the framing and color balance are off, and the frame rate is flaky), but take a look:



That little toe-headed boy at the beginning is me*. The tinsel-eating toddler is my baby brother. The other kids with Santa are my cousins. In the later films, my brother is the one with the darker hair dressed in green. There's rare footage of my Mom--I say "rare" because she was usually the one running the camera. There isn't much film footage, and there aren't a lot of photos of her (a tradition I carry on proudly!) On a related note, I have no idea why my Mom is dressed like St. Pauli Girl. Maybe Dad liked that, I dunno**.

I still have the red barn that's in the film; my Grandma made it for me, and it now sits in my son's room where he has it filled with all manner of Matchbox cars. The dog with the red bow was named "Snickers", and I have some great film of me throwing her into a snowbank. Good times.

I haven't seen these in years. And yeah, I cried like a baby. I miss my family Christmas gatherings, and I miss my folks.

Anyway, I hope I didn't bore y'all too much.



*Yeah, I'm still cute as hell. Some things never change!

**My brother tells me it was a costume of sorts for a special event. I'd tell you more, but I'd have to give away the year, and Tim's funny about giving away his age. But if you really want to know, just shoot me an e-mail and I'll quietly pass it on. We just won't tell Tim.

Post updated with information regarding out-of-sequence reels
Post updated x2 with extra footnote and grammar error corrections

Makes a Great Christmas Gift!

If anyone wants my brother's address, I'm sure he'd appreciate this wonderful Christmas Gift!

It's All About Marketing

The following photo was in an e-mail I got today promoting a new MasterCard:


I can't be the only one that sees a subtext here. The hand on the shoulder, the askew glance, the subtle yet seductive smiles, the coy caption and the rainbow graphic...

Well. Come to your own conclusions.